Liverpool have received encouragement in their pursuit of Castello Lukeba, according to a report, as TEAMtalk analyses why the RB Leipzig central defender’s potential move to Anfield could hasten the departure of a £36million star from Arne Slot’s side.
Despite winning the Premier League title with ease last season, Liverpool have not stood still in the summer transfer window. Manager Slot and sporting director Richard Hughes are well aware of the need to strengthen the squad to keep ahead of the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea next season.
Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong, Armin Pecsi and Freddie Woodman have joined Liverpool this summer, with Giorgi Mamardashvili also set to come in.
TEAMtalk understands that signing a striker is also on Liverpool’s agenda, with Newcastle United star Alexander Isak being Slot’s dream signing.
The Premier League champions are looking for a new defender, too, with TEAMtalk’s transfer correspondent, Rudy Galetti, reporting on May 27 that Liverpool enquired about Leipzig star Lukeba.
Sources have told TEAMtalk that Liverpool manager Slot personally likes Lukeba and has approved a potential deal for him.
CaughtOffSide has now brought an update on Lukeba’s situation, claiming that Liverpool are ‘preparing an offer in the region of £50-55 million’ for the 22-year-old defender, who, according to former Leipzig board member for sport, Marcel Schafer, on the club’s official website in October 2024, is “young, hungry, full of potential, ready to learn and has top-class attributes”.
The France international central defender himself is said to be keen on leaving his Bundesliga club this summer and could be sold for less than the €90million (£77.7m, $106m) release clause in his contract.
While noting in the report that ‘Lukeba is keen on a move to Anfield’, CaughtOffSide adds: ‘The Anfield hierarchy is optimistic that the player’s desire to join and Leipzig’s understanding of the situation will help facilitate a deal without the prolonged negotiations that can often derail high-profile transfers.’
The report continues: ‘Sources close to the player indicate Lukeba is excited by the prospect of joining Liverpool, where he would have the opportunity to work under Slot, compete at the highest level, and develop alongside players like Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson and others.’
Liverpool are not the only club that are interested in Lukeba, though, with Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur also chasing the youngster’s signature.
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Castello Lukeba could replace Ibrahima Konate at Liverpool
With Jarell Quansah leaving for Bayer Leverkusen in the summer transfer window, Liverpool need to sign a replacement.
Liverpool manager Slot cannot be light in central defence, as the Reds aim to win the Premier League title again next season as well as clinch the Champions League.
Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Rhys Williams are the four recognized centre-backs at Slot’s disposal at the moment.
Konate, who cost £36million when he joined in 2021, is out of contract at Liverpool at the end of next season, with Real Madrid keen on the France international central defender.
A reliable French report recently revealed that Konate has already decided to leave Liverpool as a free agent.
With the defender not planning to sign a new contract, Liverpool could decide to cash in on him this summer if they get a good transfer fee.
Lukeba may be only 22 now, but the Leipzig defender has been a regular for a while and would be more than able to hold his own in the Premier League should he make the switch to Liverpool.
Who is Castello Lukeba?
By Ben Mattinson
Castello Lukeba is an example of an increasingly valuable profile in modern football; a centre-back/full-back hybrid. One of the most defensively solid ones at that.
The French defender came through Lyon’s academy and it’s his birth-city. During his time at Lyon, ever since he broke into the first team he was an impressive figure in defence and managed to make 68 appearances, even getting four goals in the process playing almost exclusively at centre-back.
Lukeba’s consistency for Lyon made him a key player for them amongst many other academy graduates scattered around the first team. But in the summer of 2023 Lukeba would make a move across Europe to Germany as RB Leipzig signed him in a €30m deal to replace Josko Gvardiol who went to Manchester City for €90m. For such a relatively lower fee, there’s no doubt that Leipzig could make another huge profit when Lukeba is inevitably sold to one of Europe’s top teams.
Lukeba reads the game so well. Defensively he has that style like Nathan Ake in 1v1s where he blocks off all angles positioning himself side on and judges his time to engage in tackles well. Lukeba has really powerful legs and when he lunges to make a tackle, there’s often only one outcome.
Tackling is probably his greatest strength and he’s the type of defender you want to put in lots of 1v1 scenarios as it’s where he shines. Despite playing as a LCB in a back four defence at Lyon, just like Ake, he could transition to LB seamlessly.
Moreover, his tackling prowess isn’t solely about his standing lunges, it’s also the quality of his slide tackles and the timing of when to go to ground. Although Lukeba is so aggressive in winning the ball back, he’s excellent and timing his aggression well, knowing when to engage and when to delay.
It’s a skill common in elite defenders that’s hard to teach and usually comes in very experienced older defenders. The discipline to stay on your feet in dangerous scenarios to avoid giving away a penalty but still being aggressive in closing off angles is what Lukeba excels at.
In addition to this, a big part about what makes Lukeba so good defensively is his athleticism and physicality in every sense of the word. Physically he’s so strong with top core strength that shines in ground duels, but on top of that he’s very quick for a defender which enables him to catch quicker attackers.
Lukeba is a real athlete. The explosiveness in his legs enables him to leap so high making him strong in both boxes despite being only 6’0”. This jumping ability is what’s made him able to score the goals he did for Lyon and continually be a threat from set-pieces at RB Leipzig.
A huge strength in Lukeba’s profile is his ball-playing ability. The Leipzig defender is so secure on the ball and is able to retain possession and help build up from the back. Lukeba executes his passes well and has good pass selection. From deep he can pass through the lines well but also loves to carry the ball up the pitch from defence and even take on players.
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